Page 49 of Claiming Demons

Horus yelped and stumbled back, falling on his ass.

I didn’t put my sword away, didn’t relent until Horus was scampering away. Gods and daemons laughed around us.

I sighed, vanishing my sword and shaking my head. “What a douche.”

Ramsey chuckled as he put his shirt back on. “You can say that again.”

“Ah… Anais?” Harmonia’s tone was slightly curious, slightly scared.

I turned, seeing her, then followed her gaze to where the crowd was parting, letting something or someone through. Someone who was heading straight for us.

“Erini?” I breathed, but then those blocking my view fell away, and there, half-mad, with his wolf straining to get out, was Fen.

FEN

I was lost in a haze,reining in my beast with only a thread for a leash. With every speck of strength I had, I’d kept us moving toward Ana, fighting my wolf with each stumbling step. And I’d finally found her.

Even before I’d seen her, I’d felt her, like a beacon in my soul.

She called to me, pulled me, drove me. And here she was, finally, a vision in a black dress trimmed with blue and silver

Everything else around me was lost to madness, but her I saw clearly: radiant, beautiful, powerful, and compelling. The end of my quest.

Except seeing her brought no peace. My father’s voice still boomed over and over in my head:consume, destroy. It was a command, a geas, and I’d resisted it as long as I could. I hoped just one word from Ana — whose voice usually calmed my beast — would override that of my father.

“Fen?” she gasped.

And there it was…

but it wasn’t enough.

Loki was a powerful god, even if he rarely worked openly. His mental compulsions were insidious and insistent and not so easily dispelled.

“Fen? What’s wrong? What can I do? What do you need?”

More words helped, and for a moment my beast was quelled to the point that I could take control, enough to utter one word.

“You.”

My voice was rough and my canine mouth had trouble with the word, but it was clear enough.

“Right, come with me.” She took my hand — my clawed and dangerous hand — and began leading me away. And my wolf let her.

My father’s compulsion still pounded on me, but my wolf knew Ana well and apparently had decided that it could wait to consume and destroy until after whatever she had in mind.

We left the large ballroom and crossed a hall into a small room. She closed the door behind me. “Fen, I’m here for whatever you need.”

She pulled me into a tight embrace. The feel of her lush body pressed against me was purely divine. Both my wolf and I agreed on that, and I was amazed at how easily she could love me, hold me, even though I was mostly wolf at the moment.

“Tell me what you need and I’ll give it,” she whispered intently.

The trouble was… I didn’t know what I needed. I’d hoped her words would be enough to break me out of this trance, but my father’s control remained. Her words had calmed my wolf enough that I could finally rest, just a little, no longer needing every ounce of my strength to hold it in check, but it still wasn’t enough.

Ana pulled back. “Fen? Are you still in there? Say something.”

“I’m here,” I managed through my mangled mouth. “I’d hoped your words would help me, but I’m still struggling.” As with many of my father’s curses, I was compelled not to tell anyone what had happened. I hoped she understood.

She pulled me into another embrace. “I’m here, Fen.” I felt her in my soul, filling me with her love.I’m here. I’m here.